


A Day In The Village

by alienbacteria



Series: The Magic of Fear [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Family Bonding, Fluff, M/M, The Mechanisms Were The Archivist's College Band
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:41:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,915
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27252124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alienbacteria/pseuds/alienbacteria
Summary: Some days are needed to just relax. Others are actually used to get things done.Or Jon, Martin, and Harry didn't get off the couch the day before and are finally going to the village.
Relationships: Jonathan “Jon” Sims | The Archivist & Harry Potter, Martin Blackwood & Harry Potter, Martin Blackwood & Jonathan “Jon” Sims | The Archivist & Harry Potter, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist
Series: The Magic of Fear [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1970065
Comments: 13
Kudos: 104





	1. Waking up

Harry woke up in his room without a memory of getting there in the first place. The last thing he remembered of the night before was falling asleep on the couch between his new parents. A warm feeling flooded into his chest at the new memory. Harry crawled out of his soft cocoon and wandered into the dimly lit hallway. A lighter quilt draped over his shoulders like a cape. 

After making his way down the stairs, Harry found Martin at the stove, making tea and humming along to a song on the radio. Jon was nowhere in sight. The bottom stair creaked to announce Harry’s presence and Martin smiled at him. Martin waved his hand to signal him over.

Harry was hesitant, but he walked over. Being a short, malnourished 8 year old, he couldn’t see what Martin was doing, but that was quickly remedied. Martin lifted Harry onto the counter (he would regret this in later years, as it inspired a habit in Harry) and started to explain to him the process of making a proper cup of tea. The Cadet had jumped up to the counter and curled into Harry’s lap without him noticing.

“... After steeping the tea, be sure to throw the teabags into the compost. Jon uses them for the garden and gets a bit pissy if he sees one in the garbage.” Harry giggled a bit as Martin started to intimidate the man. 

“It’s important to the environment, Martin! The plants grow better with the tea!” Martin had tried to deepen his voice, but ended up sounding too gravelly and painful. Harry made eye contact with Jon, who now stood unimpressed at the bottom of the stairs. He had a hand on his hip and one eyebrow raised.

“Was that really your impression of me? Because it just sounded like you’re sick.” Martin whirled around, cheeks pink as Harry tried to hold in a smile. Martin crossed his arms and looked at Jon with narrowed eyes.

“Well maybe you always sound like you have a sore throat. You don’t even know how your voice sounds.” The argument was weak, but after a moment of silence, the kitchen erupted with cackles. Jon was leaning against the banister and Martin leaned back against the stove, wiping happy tears that leaked from his eyes. Harry clutched his blanket tighter as he tried to regain his breath. The Cadet yeowled for attention and Harry scratched behind her ears to appease the tiny beast.

“I was making tea when you so rudely interrupted. We’re out of breakfast foods, so we need to make a trip into the village as quickly as possible.” Martin said with a sigh. Jon was quick with a solution.

“How about we drink our tea and get dressed. We can have breakfast in the village.” Harry looked to Martin and nodded his head shyly to Jon. Harry slipped off the counter, set the kitten on the floor, and rushed up the stairs back to his bedroom. Jon and Martin decided to stay together for a few moments alone. Jon made his way over to Martin and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. Their foreheads connected softly and tender smiles graced their love sick faces. 

“I kind of expected to be married before we had a kid” Jon blushed at the idea and hid his face in Martin’s shoulder. Martin chuckled slightly and gave his beloved’s head a chaste kiss. Jon made a muffled sound into Martin’s neck. 

“Come on, Jon. If we’re going into the village, I would suggest getting out of your pajamas.” Jon gave another miffed response, but uncurled from his place between Martin’s neck and shoulder. He gave Martin’s cheek a quick kiss and walked back to their room to change. He stopped by Harry’s room and knocked waiting for an answer. There was subtle thud and a soft groan.

“Harry? Are you alright?” Jon had to stop himself from entering the room at the noise.

“Fine! Ju- I just tripped over something. I’m alright.” There was the padding of light footsteps and the door creaked open. Harry’s hair was a mess and he was drowning in a too big shirt. Jon realized he had probably startled at the knock, used to an unfriendly presence on the other side. It made him shake a little with anger and frown a little with regret.

“Well, I thought you might want to take a shower. I don’t think you took one yesterday, so I would recommend it. I’m going to get dressed and be downstairs with Martin. Take as much time as you need.” Harry nodded. Jon smiled and walked further down to his and Martin’s room. 

Not much of the closet was individual. A lot of the sweaters, hoodies, and t-shirts were mutual property. However, Jon and Martin each had their favorites that the other was not allowed to lay claim to. On this day, Jon decided to wear one of these tops. An older, black crew-neck sweatshirt that had the Mechanisms’ logo embroidered over the left breast along with “D’Ville” stitched in under it. It had been a small token of his university years that still made him smile. Basira and Georgie had insisted on doing something for the band’s 3 year anniversary and it consisted of sweatshirts and getting drunk.

As he decided that the crew-neck with an older pair of jeans and his jacket would be enough to fend off the cold, there was a knock on the bedroom door. Jon Knew it was Harry and went to answer. Harry was looking at the ground in embarrassment. 

“I don’t know how to turn on the shower or where the towels are.” He mumbled softly. Jon smiled.

“It’s alright, Harry. I’ll show you. All you need to do is ask.”


	2. Breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon, Martin, and Harry have breakfast in the village

“What will we say if we see Angela today? She’ll certainly have some questions.”

“Honestly, Martin, I’m just hoping that we don’t run into one of my students. We can come up with something to feed Angela pretty easily.” Jon kept his eyes on the road, but visibly smirked. Harry watched out the window, mesmerized by the rolling hills passing by. He was bundled in one of Jon’s older sweaters. The weather was significantly colder than he was used to and Harry shivered slightly.

“Well as long as we don’t run into one of your nosier ones, I’m sure we’ll be fine. What did you call the little gossip group? The stitch and bitch?” Martin giggled as Jon let out a frustrated groan. Harry made a small confused noise. 

“Harry, the knitting club at my school is full of absolute chatterboxes. You should have heard all the theories they had about me last year. Some thought I was an undercover spy, a few though I had run from a gang, and a couple of my students thought I was some kind of supernatural entity. The knitting club had a new theory or invasion on my personal life every week. Luckily, now I’m not the center of attention any more. I hear something about once a month instead of once a week.”

“Well think about it Jon! Some exhausted looking, scar covered man, became the new history teacher and suddenly there's something interesting about the village. Of course the kids are going to talk!” Harry snickered quietly in the backseat and Jon looked at him in the rear view mirror with betrayal. Harry freezed up for a moment before Jon’s face also broke into a small smile. 

“Well there's really no point in trying to hide or anything. They would find out we adopted one way or another.” The rest of the ride was quiet, soft music played over the radio and Martin was humming along. When they finally got into the village, Harry continued to look around in wonder. 

Martin took his hand as they got out of the car and started walking into a small cafe. It was homey and bustling, busy on that late Sunday morning. An older waitress walked over with a friendly knowing smile.

“Jon, Martin. It’s been a bit since I’ve seen either of you around here. Been missing your sass, Martin.” Jon snorted, but Harry shuffled closer into Martin’s side.

“That’s Angela. She can be a bit intimidating, but is wonderful once you get to know her” Martin whispered to Harry, obviously noticing his discomfort. The woman was loud and looked much stronger than Harry had expected. She reminded him faintly of his Aunt Petunia, even if it was just the hair and dress. Angela just seemed to notice him and Harry buried his face into Martin’s side.

“And who might this be?” Her face softened as she knelt down to look closer at him. Martin put a light hand on Harry’s shoulder as a means of comfort and security. Harry was still ridgid, but felt safe enough to peek out from his hiding place. He first looked to Jon, who nodded with a small smile, then to Angela who gave him a warm smile. He bit his lip and waved quickly before trying to disappear yet again. 

She looked to Martin, confused. He looked to Jon. Jon looked a bit troubled. He motioned for Angela to lean in, then whispered in her ear, “He’s my cousin’s son, Harry. My cousin died and it was recently discovered that the original family that took him in was abusive. We adopted him a couple days ago and he still isn’t used to new people.” It was a simple lie since it was mostly the truth. Jon knew he’d have to fill Martin in later, but the look of surprise and protectiveness that swept over Angela’s face was enough to know she believed him. She nodded firmly and turned to Harry with a smile. She crouched again.

“Hi, Harry. I hope you like waffles and hot chocolate since this cafe serves the best in Scotland.” Harry poked his head out again and smiled softly after a moment. He shuffled away from Martin a bit, but still stayed close. His eyes darted to the floor.

“I’ve never had waffles. Or hot chocolate.” He looked up at Angela with a small grin. “But I’d love to try them!” Suddenly the Harry that Jon and Martin had seen the day before had surfaced again. The couple gave each other a look that meant, ‘We are definitely talking about this later’.

Angela led them to the usual booth in the corner, right next to a window and far not too far from the exit. Jon and Harry sat on one side with Harry next to the window while Martin sat on the other. Jon and Martin started looking at the menus and already knowing what they would get while Harry looked around, just taking it in. 

“Hey, let's pick out some waffles. Angela was right about how good they are.” Harry scooted across the booth to look at the menu in front of Jon. Jon wrapped an arm over Harry’s shoulders and started to describe the options to Harry, who listened with rapt attention. Martin smiled at the two and subtly took a picture of the moment on his phone. 

Angela came back with hot tea for Martin, coffee for Jon, and hot chocolate for Harry. They ordered chocolate chip waffles for Martin and blueberry waffles for both Jon and Harry. Angela left and Jon took a sip of his coffee. Harry was a bit confused. He hadn’t seen a coffee maker at the cottage and thought that they both hated coffee. 

“Jon refuses to drink any tea that is not made by myself. He says it doesn’t taste the same.” 

“Because it doesn’t! There is something about the way you make it that has conditioned me to only drink your tea, Martin!” The family chuckled together before dissolving into meaningless chatter. Eventually food came and they discussed the day’s plan.

“First, finish breakfast. Then we need to shop for some clothes for Harry and maybe some room decorations. Then we can get groceries and go home.” Martin was cutting his waffles calmly as Jon started to tear them apart and eat like a starved man. Harry watched him and tried to stifle giggles at the exasperated looks Martin was giving Jon. He finished chewing a mouthful and swallowed harshly, almost leading to a coughing fit. 

“Yeah, that sounds perfect. What do you think Harry?” Harry couldn’t stop himself and started giggling hard and nodded his head. 

“I’d like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep imagining Angela as Jenna from Waitress. I don’t know. I imagine her as a 40 year old who owns the best cafe in the village and took one look at JMart and decided that she was going to keep on eye on them. Just like another mom friend. 
> 
> I’m so sorry I haven’t posted in a bit. I am planning to post either later today or over the weekend. Thank you for being patient!


	3. Shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breakfast was a success, but what about shopping?

After leaving the cafe, the family walked down the street to a charity shop. Clothes, books, furniture, the shop had it all. The couple had become quite familiar with the shop and it’s owners the year before after deciding that Daisy’s cabin needed a little sprucing up. 

“How about we start with the basics. Some pants, a few tee shirts, a couple sweaters.” Martin continued to make a list while walking towards the kids section. Jon gave a small chuckle, took Harry’s hand, and walked after his boyfriend. 

“With the weather, a jacket is essential.” Harry stayed quiet and observed the store. Other people were milling around, but no one paid them any attention. Harry turned back to his caretakers. Martin had made it to the clothes section and was waiting for the other two. 

“Harry, is there anything that we should avoid or anything we should look for? Also, do you know your sizes?” Martin looked to Harry and Jon when he asked. Harry gave a shrug.

“I just want to be comfortable. I don’t want anything too big or too small. Or too itchy. I guess what you would normally want for clothes. I don’t know my sizes, though.” Jon gave a small chuckle. 

“I do. You’re between a size x-small and a size small.” Harry gave a shrug. He found it a little odd that Jon Knew more than he did, but it wasn’t unsettling. 

“Well then. Let's start looking!” Martin started sifting through the racks for shirts while Jon combed through the jeans. Harry hopped from parent to parent examining different picks to try on. Once they had enough clothes to try on, Martin took Harry to the dressing rooms.

“I’ll be there in a couple minutes. I just want to see if there are any good jackets.” Jon wandered off while Harry wandered into a dressing room. He paired a few different things together and ended up with some winners. 4 t-shirts, 2 long sleeve shirts, 3 sweaters, and 3 sweatshirts for his tops. He also got 5 pairs of jeans and a couple pairs of sweatpants. He walked out of the dressing room with his picks to find Jon carrying a few winter coats. Martin looked exasperatedly fond besides him. 

“There were a few options to choose from, so I brought them all.” Jon almost looked a bit sheepish, but Harry bounced with a bit of excitement. Martin took the clothes from Harry, so he could try on the jackets. There was a grand total of 6 jackets, but they were able to narrow it down to 2 after the first round of try on. One was a heavy corduroy and the other was a poofy parka. Harry was leaning towards the corduroy, but couldn’t decide. Jon almost seemed to know what he was thinking.

“Let's get the corduroy. The parka has a hole in the lining. It’s barely noticeable, but it could grow over time.” It wasn’t a major concern, but it sold both Martin and Harry on the corduroy.

“Ya know, I had a jacket just like that a few years ago. I bet it’s up at the cottage. Maybe you could wear that one once you get a bit older.” Harry smiled brightly and helped Jon carry the other jackets back to the rack. The small group then started wandering around the shop of other goods. They found a desk and nightstand for Harry’s room. Harry went looking through the books and found an odd-looking tome that Jon immediately plucked out of his hands with fear in his eyes. He opened the cover and found just what he had feared. A small bookplate with “From the Library of Jurgen Leitner” etched in the front. Martin walked over and Jon showed him. 

“We need to burn it. It’s one of the Dark’s and it’s already gotten two people just in the village.” Jon looked up at Martin with concern in his eyes. Martin looked at Harry, who just looked confused. 

“Alright. Go burn it. I’ll look for less evil books with Harry.” Martin took Harry’s hand and they started browsing together. It turned out that Harry had a fascination with both legends and fantasy books. He also enjoyed some sci-fi and fun fact books. By the time Jon had gotten back, they had picked out enough novels to occupy Harry for a few weeks. They checked out and loaded out the car. 

“I’ll do the laundry when we get back home. It’s just a precaution; you can never trust a shop to wash their clothes.” Martin told Harry. Jon did offer the jacket to him, but the stolen sweater Harry was bundled in was enough to fight off the chill for the time being. Jon and Martin each took one of Harry’s hands and walked a little farther down the street to the supermarket.

“You have the list, right?” Jon looked to Martin with a raised eyebrow.

“Of- of course I have the list! Who do you take me for?” Martin gave a slight laugh while pulling the list out of his pocket. Jon grabbed a trolley as they walked past and started the direction of some of the first food items. Shopping took about an hour. 

Harry held onto the cart with Martin’s hand over his. While they were picking out some produce, Jon seemed to disappear and reappear five minutes later, looking proud and arms full of Halloween candy bags. He dumped them in the cart and stared at Martin with a look of defiance. 

“Jon. No one is going to walk down a dirt paved road and past a bunch of spooky woods to get to one house in the middle of nowhere.” Martin gave him a raised eyebrow.

“It’s for us.” Jon said with a shrug, walking towards the dairy isle. Martin shook his head with an exasperated sigh. He gave Harry a smile and started to follow Jon. Soon they were done and heading to check out.

“Hey, Mr. Sims!” The cashier exclaimed happily. Jon’s shoulders seemed to sag a little, with exhaustion or acceptance, neither Martin nor Harry could tell. 

“Hello Lanna. I … didn't know you worked here.” Martin and Harry started to put items on the conveyor belt as Jon became distracted by his former student.

“And I didn’t know you had a kid! Guess we all have secrets. We should all have a lunch gossip circle again!” She gave a wink. Martin remembered hearing stories about Lanna and her friends, Jack and Caroline. They had decided that Jon needed to open up the year before and started to eat lunch in his room just to fill him in on the school’s gossip. It was also to try to break his mysterious shell, but Martin didn’t know if they ever did. 

“Yes, well, how are you and the others doing? I haven’t seen you three much recently.” 

“Oh we're alright. History is a lot more boring without your constant topic changes and rants about old white men.” They two chuckled at that. “Are you gonna introduce me yet? I’ve heard all about Mr. Martin Blackwood, but what about squirt over there. You’ve never mentioned kids before. Have you been holding out on us?” Jon gave a strangled noise and started to sputter. Lanna’s face glazed over with a look of seriousness.

“Mr. Sims. If the topic is too broad or stressful to cover now, you can tell us later. I’m just teasing.” Jon sighed with relief. He knew there was a reason he liked Lanna, it was just hard to remember sometimes. 

“Thank you, Lanna. He’s my son and his name is Harry, but that is all you get.”

“For now.” Jon rolled his eyes at the girl’s teasing smile and found himself nodding anyways. The conversation turned to safer topics like the weather and the school year. Once everything was paid for, Lanna waved goodbye and moved onto the next customer. They walked down to the car and packed it with groceries. 

“Sooooo … you told your students about me?” Martin asked once the boot was closed and Harry had crawled back in the car. Jon gave him a playful shove.

“Oh shush. It was Valentine's day and they were discussing their plans for the day. They asked if I had any plans and I had said that I needed to pick up flowers on the way home. That naturally brought questions.” Jon crossed his arms and pouted. Martin chuckled and wrapped his arms around Jon, leaving a kiss on his beloved forehead. They stayed there for a moment, just enjoying the warm presences of each other.

“Time to go home?” Jon rumbled a response into Martin’s collarbone. The answer was something between ‘warm’ and ‘yes’. Martin pulled back and kissed Jon’s cheek before going to the passenger’s side and waiting for Jon to recover. When he did, they started the quiet drive back to the cottage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter! I’m going to try and have it out on Wednesday, but again I make no promises. The last few days have been hard for me due to a lot of tests and the end of my sport season. I’ve just been feeling depressed and stressed (hey that rhymed!), but writing this fic has helped quiet a bit. Thank you all for reading and I hope you have a fantastic week!


	4. Settling In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of family bonding, naps, and the Cadet.

The car was filled with an unfamiliar chatter on the way back to the cottage. Harry was both extremely excited and absolutely exhausted at the same time. He felt like he could decorate every nook and cranny in his room, but also as if he could sleep for the next thousand years. Martin and Jon noticed this and suggested a break after bringing the furniture up to Harry’s room.

“I can start the laundry after and Jon can make us some spiced cider. He makes it better than anyone I know.” Jon preened a bit at the praise and Harry smiled. The car pulled into the driveway and Harry immediately hopped out to try to help.

“Harry, I don’t think you’ll be able to safely help with moving the furniture.” Harry pulled a disappointed face at Jon. “However, you can take the clothes to the wash room. You can take the clothes out of the bags and start taking tags off as well.” Jon handed Harry the bags of clothes from the side of the car and watched as he ran off into the house. One person could bring the books and nightstand upstairs, but they would have to both carry the desk.

“Desk first? Then I take the nightstand and you take the books?” Martin asked, opening the boot of the car. Jon nodded and reached for a leg of the desk to pull it out. With the two of them working to get the furniture and books upstairs, the work went quickly. Martin headed to the washroom. Harry had finished the tags and had begun sorting the clothes based on clothing type. A napping Cadet had claimed the pile of sweaters. Martin knocked lightly on the doorframe so Harry didn’t startle.

“I can take care of the rest. Why don’t you go help Jon with the cider?” Harry looked up with a small gleam in his eyes and nodded. Dropping the scissors on the counter, Harry ran to the kitchen. Martin let out a chuckle and moved to start washing them. Jon had just started getting set with the ingredients for the cider when Harry came in with a bright smile on his face.

“Here to help me with cider?” He chuckled as Harry nodded animatedly. “Alright, come here.” He picked Harry up and set him on the counter, just as Martin had done that morning. Harry giggled and looked at the spice bottles covering the counter.

“That’s a lot of spices. Are we using all of them?”

“Well, it is spiced cider, Harry,” Harry looked away bashfully before Jon went on. “But no, I was going through the cabinet to find our spices. Luckily, we have all of them!” Harry looked up to find Jon had grabbed a knife, a cutting board, and an orange. Jon looked at Harry with a welcoming smile.

“If you’d like, you can measure the spices and put them in the bowl.” Harry nodded and set to work. The two worked in tandem and soon the cider was steaming in its pot on the stove. Jon stirred the cider mindlessly, telling Harry about the recipe’s history. Harry was petting the Cadet, who had found her way into the kitchen during the cooking process. Martin walked in as Jon poured the cider into mugs for each of them.

“We’ve all earned a break. We have a couple hours before one of us needs to cook dinner. How about a movie.” Jon nodded and handed Harry two mugs and sent him over to the couch. Martin had grabbed a couple blankets and was sifting through the movies.

“How about The Nightmare Before Christmas? It’s almost Halloween after all.” Martin looked over at Harry to find a look of confusion.

“Is it scary?”

“I don’t find it scary. I think you might even like it.” Harry gave it a second before nodding and placing the mugs on the coffee table. Eventually the small family had all curled up on the sofa, Martin in the middle with Jon and Harry on either side. The Cadet joined them a few minutes later and curled into Harry’s lap. With how warm and safe he felt, Harry felt himself drift peacefully off to sleep.

“We should probably wake him up, right? He was really excited to organize his room.” Jon shrugged to Martin. The credits played and the Cadet purred in the background.

“Well, you do have to go put the wash into the dryer.” Martin sighed and gave Harry a gentle shake. “Harry, time to wake up and decorate your room.” Martin leaned Harry up against the back of the couch and went to the washroom again. As Harry slowly opened his eyes, Jon took the empty mugs to the kitchen.

Harry finally opened his eyes fully when he felt a small paw tap his nose. He found the Cadet standing against his chest looking at him with curiosity. Once she saw he was awake, she started to shriek insistently. Harry’s face broke into a smile.

“Hi, Cadet.” She gave a last meow and jumped off the couch heading towards the kitchen. Harry got up and followed.

“Thank you, Cadet. Martin is switching out the wash if you want to go find him.” She gave a loud ‘murp’ in response and scampered out of the kitchen. Jon chuckled and turned to face Harry.

“Ready to decorate.” Harry gave a nod and they headed to his bedroom. The bed sat in the right corner of the room, pushed up against a wall and under a window. Bags of books sat on the bed and the dresser leaned against the foot of the bed. The nightstand sat next to the bed. The desk was next to the window seat with the bookshelf next to it, empty of books.

“Is the layout alright? Martin and I tried to figure out what you want it to look like, bu-” Jon was cut off as Harry threw his arms around him again.

“It’s perfect.” Jon wrapped his arms around Harry and held him. He waited until he was sure Harry was ready to begin. Eventually, Harry pulled away, wiped his eyes, smiled, and walked over to the books on his bed. They worked together to sort out the books by author and started placing them on the shelf and made Harry’s bed. By the time they were done, Martin knocked on the door with clean laundry.

“It looks great in here! I brought the wash.” Martin held up a basket of many colored clean clothes. Harry beamed and rushed over to help.

“I’ll go start dinner. Any particular requests?” Jon waited in the doorway for answers. Martin gave a shrug while Harry looked at the floor and quietly answered.

“Do you know any family recipes? I never learned any, but … I really want to?” Harry looked back up and met Jon’s smiling eyes.

“Of course, Harry. We can make dinner together tomorrow, once your room is set up.” He looked over to Martin. “Is pasta alright?” Martin and Harry nodded and turned to start folding the laundry. Jon left the room to go start cooking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can’t keep a schedule. I’m truly sorry, but I just can’t. Thank you all for being paient, but I’m not keeping a real schedule. I’ll keep updating, but I’m making no promises of when I will. Thank you all


	5. Parental Reassurance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry is feeling a bit uneasy about his place in the family. Martin does not want it to stay that way. (This is a Martin centric chapter)

If you had asked Martin during the Prentiss days where he saw himself in five year, he wouldn’t have known what to say. He probably would be in London still working at the Magnus Institute, maybe he would get a pet to spice things up. However, he never expected to be in the Scottish Highlands with his prickly boss, whom he had formed an ill-advised crush on. More so, he wouldn’t have expected to be a father figure to a child.

But here he was, folding laundry with a boy he had come to view as his son and the love of his life in the kitchen making them all dinner. They had only taken in Harry two days ago, but it felt like he had been the missing puzzle piece to their little home. Even if he was a little quiet at times, Harry brought light to the dark corners Martin hadn’t noticed before.

They were about half way done with the laundry and Harry was chattering away about a book he had found in the shop. Martin listened, silently pleased that Harry was willing to open up. The boy waved his hands around with an animated quality that reminded him of Jon’s info-dumps. He could see how they were related easily. 

Harry looked like a child sized Jon, same unkempt hair and dark skin. Big quirky glasses and shy smiles. Martin saw Jon in Harry the moment he had walked into the cottage, and every moment he spent with the child, he grew even fonder. 

“And there are pictures of different types of stars! I saw one that was a deep red called a red dwarf. My book said that it was extremely small and burned cooler than other stars. I didn’t finish the book yet, but I really want to.” By the end, Harry was playing with his hands nervously. Martin gave a small, fond chuckle

“Wash and dinner first, Harry. You will have all the time in the world to read once your bed is clear.” Harry gave a bright smile to Martin, sat down on the bed, and picked up a shirt to fold. He hesitated for a second and then looked up at Martin.

“Uncle Martin? At the shop, Uncle Jon called me his son. Is that … Am I?” The question’s abruptness startled him into the moment. Martin knew he viewed Harry as their son, but he also knew it scared all three of them in different ways. 

Jon had confronted him the day before, saying that he didn’t want to replace Harry’s real parents. Martin had tried to quell his worries, telling Jon that they wouldn’t be replacing his real parents by taking care of the poor boy. It hadn’t completely worked, but he knew Jon felt a little better. Martin also knew that Harry was afraid that they would not love him. That they would leave him when he would need parents most. Finally, there were Martin’s own fears of inadequacy. He had never had a good parent. His father abandoned him and his mother as a child, and with Jon’s help, he accepted that he was not the cause of his mother’s emotional abuse. He didn’t have anything to compare himself to and it was terrifying.

“Harry, you can be whatever you want. If you want us to be your parents, then we will be your parents. If you want us to be your uncles, we will be your uncles. But no matter what you call us, you are our son.” He looked at Harry to find tears running down his face. 

“Oh, Harry. Come here.” Martin set down the jeans he had been folding and opened his arms. Harry looked up and crawled over to Martin. Martin scooped the boy into his lap and just held him close. 

“It’s alright, Harry. It’s alright.” He started to run a hand through Harry’s hair. Harry continued to cry until his cries turned into sobs. A protective urge runs through Martin and he squeezes Harry a little bit closer. 

“I just- I don’t-” Sobs continues to break up Harry's attempts to speak.

“Shhh, it’s alright. Take a breath, Harry. I’m not going to leave.” Martin ran a hand up and down the boy’s back to soothe him. He took a few deep breaths for Harry to mimic, working to calm him down. It worked a little more than he expected and after a few minutes, Harry was fast asleep. Martin picked him up, tucked him into the bed, and turned to finish the laundry. He was putting away the last of the laundry when there was a knock at the door. Martin turned and saw Jon standing in the doorway.

“I Saw what happened. Are you okay?” Martin looked over at Harry who was curled up under the cozy quilt. He sighed and looked up at Jon.

“I’m alright. I just ... don’t want to leave him. I told him I wouldn’t.” Martin didn’t think Jon’s face could soften more than it already had, but somehow it did. Jon took a couple steps forward and wrapped his arms around Martin. He dropped his head into the crook of Martin’s neck, breathing in the other man’s scent. Martin hid his face in Jon’s hair, holding his love in a strong embrace.

“I could bring you some dinner up here for you.” Jon offered. He nuzzled a little closer and Martin placed his chin on the top of Jon’s head. Martin hummed in response.

“Darling, I know you hate food upstairs. What if we bring him downstairs? It will be a win-win for everyone. No food upstairs, we can eat dinner together, and we can keep an eye on Harry.” Jon nodded lightly, but refused to move away. He just snuggled a little closer.

“Jon. Sweetheart, pumpkin, light of my life. Did you turn off the stove for the pasta sauce?” Martin could feel the heat of Jon’s cheeks on his neck. 

“Noooooo?” Martin chuckled and Jon gave an indignant huff, pulling away from his cozy refuge.

“So you’re going to go turn off the stove while I get Harry downstairs and comfy on the couch?” 

“I guess … but not without a kiss.” The childish response made Martin roll his eyes, but lean in for a quick peck anyways. Martin pushed him away lightly.

“Now go make sure dinner doesn’t burn.” They both laughed softly as Jon left the room. Martin turned to Harry’s sleeping figure, bundled in the patchwork quilt, and his heart melted. Martin scooped Harry up, blanket included, and headed downstairs. He set Harry down on the couch and walked into the kitchen. 

He knew that they would have a lot to talk about in the morning, but right now, he decided that food and his love were more important than the problems of the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am terribly sorry about how long it’s taken me to post. I had 2 birthdays and Thanksgiving in the span of 5 days. The long and short of it is that I’ve been busy. I have another fic planned out and in the writing process, but I’m not going to set a release date. I’ll just forget. 
> 
> Anyways! I hope you enjoyed this fic and hope you have a good day :D

**Author's Note:**

> This is going to be fluff. I don’t have much experience in angst, but I might try writing an angst-ish oneshot at a later date. As of now, just read some good old family bonding!
> 
> *edit note: I went back to my first story and realized that Harry already has a bookshelf. I thought he had a desk, so now he gets a desk


End file.
